EPISODE 679 Brumby's bashers are revealed and punished. Marty places himself in great danger as he tries to help Spike. First broadcast ... 1986 (Melbourne) Broadcast on Channel 5 Sunday 31 December 2000 04:10 DVD release: volume 40 disc 2 (AUS) Duration: 0:45:22

Meg ~ Elspeth Ballantyne Ann ~ Gerda Nicolson Joyce ~ Joy Westmore Rita ~ Glenda Linscott Alice ~ Lois Collinder Kath ~ Kate Hood Merle ~ Rosanne Hull-Brown Rodney ~ Philip Hyde Marty ~ Michael Winchester Delia ~ Desiree Smith Spider ~ Taya Straton Lisa ~ Terrie Waddell Spike ~ Victoria Rowland Brumby ~ Sheryl Munks Vicki ~ Rebecca Dines Harry Grosvenor ~ Mike Bishop Martha Quinn ~ Julie Du Rieu Alison Mills ~ Fiona Corke Barman ~ Dean Nicols Tony Anderson ~ Steve Lane UNCREDITED The two thugs beating up Marty Written by Ian Smith & Alison Nisselle Directed by Chris Sheil

Kath, Alice and Rita confront Spider: she admits that she attacked Brumby but will not own up. Ann plans to knock down a wall as part of one of her reform projects which will begin to be built that same day. Brumby won't promise Spike that she won't try to escape again, but only to play along and tell Rita she won't try to escape. Kath is annoyed by Rita's decision to give Merle a round the clock bodyguard. Spider and Vicki agree to own up to bashing Brumby and Ann decides on a new punishment: they are assigned to act as her servants for a day. Spider is forced into the torture of reading Brumby a trashy romance. In revenge when she is asked to make a cup of tea for Spike, Spider tries to stir it by telling Brumby that Spike was at University. When she asks Rita for advice, she tells Spike she's a snob. Ann sits down to eat with the women, but they are too surprised to talk to her. Spider makes Brumby's bed with an evil grin on her face. Alice reacts predictably to the news that workmen will be in the prison: Rita has to warn her not to leave Merle alone while she wanders off looking for blokes. Rita tells Kath she will have to come up with some contraband quickly or she'll have to find someone else who will. Spider blackmails Rodney to make sure he won't help Kath. Marty asks Spike who he should try to contact: she suggests he should try to find a woman called Christine Dutton, who can give her an alibi as she was with her on the night of the murder. Alice takes Merle with her to see the men, and meets Harry , one of the male prisoners doing building work in another block. Kath begs Rodney to bring in goods for her but he refuses. Merle finds Kath in tears and promises she will look after her, without really understanding what the problem is. Spike makes it up with Brumby. Marty has no luck tracing Christine Dutton. Alice talks to Harry again and finds out they come from the same part of the country, but Meg catches them. Lisa (who was found guilty but let off with a bond) follows Rodney from work and into a bar, where a woman called Alison Mills approaches him because she recognizes him from an amateur dramatic performance of "Night must fall". Marty arrives at the same bar, and prevents Lisa following Rodney out, ignoring all the rules about association to buy her a drink. He asks for her help with Spike's case, but she refuses to get involved. Kath enlists Merle's help in tracking down Spider's stash, since she was foolish enough to brag about it. Marty is roughed up outside the bar to stop him investigating further. ***

Story Editor: Bevan Lee
Script Editor: Neil Luxmoore
Storyliners: Tony McDonald, John Coulter, Bob Greenberg

ITV regional broadcast dates:-
Broadcast on Channel 5 Sunday 31 December 2000 04:10

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